Patriots Notebook: Ridley's priorities are in place

Sunday

Jul 27, 2014 at 7:03 PMJul 27, 2014 at 7:06 PM

By Glen FarleyGateHouse News Serivice

FOXBORO — He doesn't consider the season a dash for cash."I have to be honest about it," running back Stevan Ridley answered when asked about the contract year he's entering into with the Patriots. "It's there, but it's not my first concern."My first concern is going out there and being the best player for this team, and I think if I go out there and have a productive year and do what I need to do, that the contract will take care of itself. So I'm not really going to put too much thought into it because I think, as you guys (in the media) know, if I start thinking about that, it could easily be a distraction."So I can't really worry with that," said Ridley. "I am going to have the good days. I'm going to have some bad days. But I'm going to just keep working and keep my head in the dirt and keep grinding it out."Ridley's 4.5-yard rushing average on 555 carries over his three years in the NFL makes him the Patriots' all-time leader in that department, but they've come at a price — nine career fumbles, eight in the past two seasons, six of them resulting in fumbles.

Welcome to the NFLOn the second day of practice in full pads, veteran cornerback Brandon Browner welcomed rookie running back James White to the NFL by leveling him with a hit he punctuated with a celebratory scream.Following the rain-shortened practice, Ridley swept the fourth-round draft pick off his feet with praise."I say particularly, and not to single out one guy, but James has come in and he's done an awesome job," said Ridley.

Take a lapRookie quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (third day in a row) and rookie center Bryan Stork (second day in a row) were forced to run their daily punishment laps for a botched snap.Linebackers Steve Beauharnais and Cameron Gordon were similarly punished during Sunday's practice after jumping offside.

Roster's fullThe Patriots released wide receiver Greg Orton, who reportedly suffered a torn Achilles tendon at Friday's practice (he was carted off the field), and signed wideouts Cole Stanford (Cal Poly) and Brian Tyms (Florida A&M).The moves put the Patriots at the league-limit 90 players.Director of player personnel Nick Caserio said that Orton will "probably end up on injured reserve."

Start your enginesWide receiver Julian Edelman joked that his recent experience driving the pace car at NASCAR Sprint Car series Camping World RV Sales 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway prepared him for last Wednesday's conditioning test."It's good," said Edelman. "It actually helped me for the conditioning test to set the pace for what our times were. It was a fun experience and you get to appreciate that sport when you see it up close."